1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and, particularly, to an information processing apparatus for inputting and outputting data to/from a device connected through a device driver (program) loaded in an OS (operating system) of a host computer.
2. Related Background Art
Hitherto, various products are used as OSs of a host computer. There is a case where among OS software, a portion (device driver) for driving devices such as printer, display, and the like is compiled integrally with a kernel of the OS. In recent years, however, the device driver is often constructed as what is called a loadable module that is read in accordance with a set file when the OS is booted or the like. There is also a device driver having a format of an application program so as to enable another device driver to be activated during the operation of the OS.
Recently, the device driver (program), particularly for a printer, is called a printer driver, a printer manager, or the like (hereinafter, simply referred to as a xe2x80x9cprinter driverxe2x80x9d). In many conventional printer drivers, data is inputted and outputted to/from a printer port at a very low level. However, there is also considered a printer driver for translating between a page description language (printer control language) that is understood by the printer and another printer control language or a format in accordance with the OS.
There is also a printer driver which have therein softwares corresponding to a plurality of devices (not limited to the printer, but including a plotter and the like as well) and which enables various output devices such as printer and the like to output by designating a kind of the printer, or the like.
In the OS using the loadable device driver, a device which has not initially been supported by the OS can be used by replacing the printer driver. Recently, when the output device such as a printer or the like is purchased, there is a case where an exclusive-use device driver for the device in the major OS is annexed.
A number of OSs for controlling a host computer also exist nowadays. The same host computer is controlled by different OSs or a plurality of OSs are installed in the same host computer and one of the OSs is activated by switching them. When the OSs are different, since the description formats of the device drivers are also different, it is necessary to supply the device driver every OS even in case of the printer drivers for driving the same printer as a target.
On the other hand, recently, on the output device side as well, a method whereby the printers are connected to a plurality of printer ports or a method whereby printers are switched and connected by using a change-over switch is used in order to selectively use the devices in accordance with objects.
When the printer to be used is changed as mentioned above, it is naturally necessary to load the printer driver corresponding to the printer and to change the setting of the printer driver, and the like. There is a case such that the printer drivers are different for every OS as mentioned above or exist as different files on a disk, so that there are problems in that the work required of the user for correctly loading or changing the printer driver is very complicated and troublesome.
When a designation by a user is wrong, the data cannot be correctly outputted as a matter of course.
In the case where computers are connected to a network in which a number of printer devices exist, it is necessary to store all of the printer drivers in all of the computers on the network, which leads to the problem that resources of external memories (hard disk and the like) are consumed.
Although the above problems have been described with respect to a printer as an example, similar problems also occur in device drivers of other peripheral devices such as a display, plotter, sound card, PCMCIA card, and the like.
The invention is made to solve the above problems, and it is an object of the invention to provide an information processing apparatus which can automatically load a device driver (program) adaptive to a peripheral device that is used into an OS without an operation of the user, and which can prevent the use of a wrong device driver and prevent resources such as memory, disk, and the like of a computer being wasted.
In order to accomplish the above object, according to the invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus which is constructed by a host computer and a peripheral device connected to the host computer through a bidirectional interface (for instance, bicentronics) and which inputs and outputs data between the host computer and the peripheral device through the device driver that corresponds to the peripheral device and is loaded in the OS of the host computer, wherein the peripheral device has memory means in which the device driver corresponding to the peripheral device has been stored, and the device driver in the memory means is obtained from the peripheral device as necessary and is loaded into the OS of the host computer.
By such a construction, the device driver prepared for the peripheral device can be obtained from the peripheral device as necessary and can be automatically loaded into the OS.